The Darkest Light
by AngstyCanadianGleek
Summary: After the incident at the zoo, Harry leaves his abusive home, only to encounter two mysterious figures who introduce him to the world of magic where nothing is as it seems. Watch as Harry discovers the truth about his past and comes face-to-face with the evil that hides in the light. Evil Dumbledore, Adopted Harry, SLASH... Evil Dumbledore; good Slytherins, implied past abuse
1. Chapter 1

Harry Potter was at the zoo. For any other child this wouldn't be a big deal but to be standing outside the zoo with his relatives and Dudley's was something he could have only dreamed of. Normally when they went anywhere, he was sent to Mrs Figg's house but she had broken her legs tripping over one of her cats and couldn't watch Harry.

Of course. Harry was blamed for this and though he couldn't understand the logic behind the accusation, he knew nothing he would say would change his relatives mind.

They hadn't even stepped into the zoo and already he'd gotten an ice lolly when they'd taken Dudley and Piers for a treat. While Dudley complained about how his wasn't big enough, Harry enjoyed his treat in peace. It was the best thing he had tasted and he savoured the taste for as long as it lasted.

"I want no _funny_ business while we're in here, got it, boy," Vernon Dursley sneered towards his nephew. Though Harry had no idea what 'funny' business his uncle was always referring to, he still felt himself nod.

But he knew that if anything were to happen, it wasn't his fault; strange things just happened around Harry and there wasn't anything he could do about it. Things like his hair growing inches overnight after a terrible haircut to winding up on the school roof while running from his cousin and friends. He had no idea how these things had happened but he was punished as though they had been done on purpose.

The fact that they got mad at Harry for the strangest things and refused to answer his questions on anything made him wonder what they were trying to keep from him. He felt like the answer was right in front of his nose but he just couldn't wrap his brain around it.

The zoo was large but uneventful. They would occasionally pass large groups of children as they travelled between exhibits. It wasn't until they got to the reptile exhibit that Dudley and Piers finally began to show something other than boredom. Piers had taken to making weird noises at the displays while Dudley pressed his fat face to display glass to get closer looks at the dangerous creatures.

Harry made his way to a display with a large boa constrictor and watched the large snake sleep; letting his thoughts drift to what he was going to do for the rest of the summer and for once let himself think about how much he was looking forward to going to a school separate from Dudley. He didn't even care that it was a school for delinquents.

"MOVE!"

The sudden banging beside Harry's head startled him out of his thoughts. Dudley was banging the glass in a pathetic attempt to get the snakes attention. The snake opened its eyes, glanced around the exhibit and simply nestled closer to the heat lamp. Unimpressed by this display, Dudley stormed off to bug some other creature.

"Sorry about him. But I'm sure you're used to that by now," Harry muttered absently to the snake; unaware that his words had captured the snake's attention and that the snake was now etching closer to the window. "People pressing their ugly faces to the glass and making sounds. Do you ever get tired of it?"

When the snake nodded, Harry found himself shocked. He hadn't been expecting a response from a snake. It had to be a coincidence.

"Can you hear me?"

Once again the snake nodded and Harry felt his pulse pick up. The snake could hear him and it understood what he was saying. He knew snakes were smart but this was smarter than he could have imagined.

"I've never spoken to a snake before. Do you speak with people often?" Harry asked and felt his eyes widen just a bit when the snake shake its head in response.

Glancing around, Harry found a sign that gave information about the snake and where it came from.

"You're from Brazil? Was it nice there? Did you miss your family?"

The snake once again shook its head and pointed its tail towards another sign that explained how the snake was bred in captivity.

"Yeah, I never knew my family either. Do you..."

"Hey! Look what the snake's doing!" Dudley cried as he waddled towards the exhibit, pushing Harry to the floor as hard as he could so he could press his fat face directly in front of the snake. Harry felt bad for the snake, being stuck behind the glass while his pig cousin and Piers made faces at the snake and tapped the glass causing the snakes eyes to twitch.

Suddenly the glass disappeared and Dudley and Piers lost their balance and fell into the exhibit. Harry was barely able to keep from laughing as Dudley and Piers shuffled away from the snake. But they didn't really need to worry because the snake was too busy taking the opportunity to escape to be concerned with the ugly boys who had fallen into the little pool of water in the exhibit.

"Brazzzil here I commme," Harry heard the snake exclaim as it slithered away, playfully snapping its teeth at anyone it passed. Harry let out a chuckle before turning to see how his cousin and Piers were doing only to discover that the glass had reappeared and the boys were once again pressing their ugly faces against it but from the inside this time.

Harry started laughing once again and kept laughing as he watched his aunt trying to comfort the boys and try to figure out how they got stuck in there in the first place. Harry's laughter didn't stop until he saw the look his uncle was giving him; he was in big trouble and once again he was sure he hadn't done anything. He just hoped the joy of seeing his cousin stuck behind there was going to be worth the beating he was going to get that night.

* * *

That night Harry got the worst beating he'd ever received and he finally decided he was fed up with this treatment. He now had a black eye, a split lip and a bruise along his jaw. He wasn't going to put up with being beat, belittled and lied to about such important things and he needed to be around people who wouldn't call him a freak and beat him over things he couldn't control. He didn't know where he was going but he knew he was getting away from his 'loving' relatives. _I think I'd be better off being raised by the monkeys in the zoo. At least they were more intelligent than the Dursleys._

After his relatives went to sleep, he gathered the money he had earned over the years doing odd chores for the neighbours and was pleased to say he had more than anyone his age. He threw that in his oversized pants pocket and gathered the few things he owned and left the house so quietly that he knew he had not been heard. From outside, he could hear his Uncle's snoring and his cousin's TV blaring. Harry rolled his eyes at his cousin for sleeping with his TV so loud and made his way down the street.

As Harry walked he became increasingly aware of the fact that he didn't know where he was even going but he knew anywhere was better than with his family.

As he passed one house, he could see a man rocking a screaming, crying baby and he wondered if his parents ever did that with him before they died. Did his parents rock him to sleep when he cried? Did they hug him and sing to him? Did they love him and give him toys? Harry wondered again what it was like to be in a family that wanted him and did their best to make sure he was happy and healthy.

As Harry curled up for a night inside the jungle gym at school, he began to think of his aunt's face when she realised that she was going to have to cook their own breakfast and make Dudley's lunch for herself. Harry smirked as he thought about the look on her face when she had to clean her own house do her own gardening instead of depending on a ten-year-old to do her housework. As he fell asleep he smiled as he realised that his relatives would no longer be able to beat him or call him a freak. He was absolutely never going back and nothing was going to make him.

"Hey, kid? What do you think you're doing here at six o'clock in the morning? You have a real shiner there, did you get in a fight?"

When Harry woke up to find himself facing the janitor, he thought quickly with something to say that wouldn't get him sent back to his relatives.

"I'll go back home now Mr Polkins."

As Harry scrambled away, he heard the man mutter about kids and how he wished he had taken another job while he had the chance.

As Harry began walking, he noticed a man in unusual robes, almost like a dress, watching him carefully. It was almost like the man was studying him and he was watching him with a gleam of familiarity in his eyes but Harry had never met this person before. It was obvious the man was observing Harry's bruise covered face. The look on his face was mixed with a look between anger and disbelief. Despite the distance, Harry could make out what looked to be a sneer on the man's pale face.

A few seconds after spotting the man, a man with long, pale hair and similar but more lavish clothing, appeared beside the first man. He wore a similar but less intense expression on his face and like the first man, he appeared to be studying Harry. Harry blinked and rubbed his eyes, the logical part of his brain was having trouble processing the site. Where had that man come from because he hadn't been there a few seconds ago, had he? He was having trouble seeing properly anyway, so he assumed maybe he missed the man.

But one thing was clear, they were coming right to him. It was obvious it was him they were approaching because they were staring directly at him. It was almost as though they had been looking for him. Were they police officers? Had the Durlseys called them when they realised he was missing? Harry doubted this but it was the only explanation his mind could come up with.

When they got closer, Harry could hear them softly whispering to each other. Suddenly, one of them bent down until he was eye level with Harry; Harry not expecting this stranger to do this felt a slight urge to run but for some reason decided against it.

"Mr Potter, may I inquire as to where you received your injuries?"

The man with the pale skin and the black hair stared into Harry's eyes and Harry was overwhelmed with the oddest feeling that the man could see right through him; it was probably just nerves but he felt the oddest feeling in his mind, it was almost like he wasn't the only one in his own. The thought seemed so weird but it was the only way he could describe the sensation. Just as he was starting to worry about whether or not he was going mad, the feeling stopped.

"How do you know my name?" Harry asked, trying not to squirm uncomfortably at the frankness of the question or the lingering odd feeling in the back of his mind. Hopefully, the man would forget he had asked.

"I was a friend of your mother. Now, your injuries, how did you receive them?" The man seemed persistent on finding out how Harry received his bruises and it made Harry wonder what the man knew. He knew his relatives didn't like when people got suspicious, but Harry being a boy made it easier for them to say things like 'he get's in scraps with other boys' and nobody bats an eye.

What caught Harry's attention was the fact that these men actually appeared like they cared and he could see what looked like actual concern in their eyes. Most people think he's a delinquent, so when he shows up with bruises and cuts they always go for the conclusion that he'd been in a fight or something. Nobody ever suspects his saint-like relatives; only the best kinds of people would take in a criminally insane boy and treat him like one of their own. It made Harry sick the way his relatives spoke about him and how many people actually had believed them; especially when he was little. But he knew he had to give these men the same lines.

"I got in a fight. You should see the other guy," Harry began in the way his relatives had taught him early on, including bragging about the condition of 'the other guy'. It made it sound like Harry fought often, so nobody questioned it when he showed up with bruises all the time. Harry often wondered why people were stupid enough to believe it because anyone who knew Harry personally would know that Harry wasn't a violent person and that he often took smarter more resourceful means to deal with his problems. He was smart enough to know that punching someone in the face wouldn't solve anything.

"Indeed and do you take me for a fool Mr Potter? Those handprints on your throat are much too large to have come from any child much less any of the snivelling creatures in this neighbourhood," the man paused briefly to take a breath and calm himself before he spoke again. "Allow me to start over. I am Severus Snape and this is my... friend Lucius Malfoy and we became notified that you have decided that your relatives care is unacceptable and by the sight of you, I am compelled to agree with your assessment. With that being said, I am offering you the option to be raised in a setting more fitting a wizard of your status."

Harry stared at Severus for a moment before the confusion settled in. He had no idea what this man was talking about. A wizard of his status? Was this man trying to be deliberately confusing?

"I'm sorry, what's a wizard?"

The question seemed to cause both men's faces to tighten with anger and Harry wished he could take back the question but it was too late.

"Surely your relatives explained what you are, what your parents were," Lucius spoke carefully.

Harry had been told that he was a bastard and his parents were drunks. When he told Lucius and Severus this, they both appeared to be furious but upon seeing the terrified expression on Harry's face, Lucius quickly kneeled before the boy and put an assuring hand on his shoulder.

Harry, who had never experienced this before found himself smiling at the interaction he'd only seen his relatives share with Dudley. But he was also hesitant about why someone he'd just met was doing this. Harry decided he would be careful around these unknown men until he was sure they were safe... and not likely to return him to his relatives.

"I'm not mad at you, I'm... we are mad at your relatives. Their treatment of you is deplorable and the fact that couldn't be bothered to tell you about your magical heritage only makes it worse," Lucius told Harry in a comforting tone. Though the man's expression was soft, Harry could tell he was still angry.

"They told me that there was no such thing as magic," Harry said sadly, his bruises throbbed angrily as he remembered his beating yesterday. It was as though they were reminding him what happened when that word was used. "That magic is a bad word."

The men shared a look before turning to face Harry with expressions the child couldn't identify. Clearly, his answer had done nothing to make them less angry; if anything it just added fuel to the fire.

"I can assure you, Harry, that magic is very much real and if you come with us, we can show you."

Harry knew he shouldn't go with strangers but he felt in his gut that he could trust Lucius and Severus and besides, wherever they were taking him couldn't be worse than staying with the Dursleys. Harry looked at Lucius Malfoy's outstretched hand and decided that these men knew something about why his family hated him so much and going with them was the best way to get answers.

Harry nodded and took hold of the man's hand and suddenly, his gut felt like it was being sucked into a straw and just like that, the three of them disappeared from the street completely.


	2. Chapter 2

Everything was spinning and Harry knew if there had been any food in his belly, he would have thrown up. At first, Harry couldn't process his surroundings but as his world stopped spinning, he also found it easier to grasp where he was. He was in a large room with expensive looking furniture. A lot of the items in the room were various shades of green. Harry had no idea how they had arrived wherever they were but he knew he didn't like it one bit. This was worse than the time Dudley had tied him to a spinning chair and spun him for five minutes; it would have been longer but the teacher made him stop.

"I'm sure you would like to sit down now, wouldn't you?" Lucius asked Harry, guiding the pale, shaking child to a soft sofa. When the child was seated, Lucius and Severus sat on the opposite couch.

"How did we get here? I didn't like it," Harry said honestly, not feel like softening the blow for them; he felt too sick to try.

"That was magic; magic that is very much real. In fact, magic runs in your blood and has for generations," Lucius explained to Harry who was frowning. "You are a powerful wizard just like your parents."

"But Aunt Petunia says..."

"I think we can safely say that anything that came out of her mouth was a lie. Their deplorable treatment positively was barbaric. She was always jealous of your mother's powers but I can't believe she would take it out on an innocent child," Lucius said, causing Severus to snort, a sound that sounded strange coming from the man.

"I'm not surprised. That woman was hateful and nasty towards anything to do with magic and Dumbledore knew this when he dropped the child there. You know the old man..."

"Severus, you are scaring the poor boy," a soft voice scolded Severus. "Hello dear, I am Narcissa Malfoy. I am a very dear friend of Lucius and his... friend."

Harry frowned, that was the second time he'd heard a pause while the relationship between Severus and Lucius was being described. Harry wondered if they were like his classmates Joseph and Adam who introduced themselves as each other's... friends but liked to kiss each other when nobody was looking. He knew it made some people mad, so he didn't say anything but he didn't care if Lucius and Severus liked to kiss each other. Harry himself had kissed a boy before and he knew Dudley and Piers liked to kiss all the time too.

"Sorry Cissy," Severus said.

"Yes, well save it, I need to work on healing this boy and I need potions to do so. Lucius, why don't you go explain to Draco what is happening?"

While Narcissa worked on healing Harry's injuries, she explained magic to him and told him about everything that he would be able to learn once he started at Hogwarts.

"Your parents would have been devastated that you were raised in such a way after they were killed. Your mother died trying to protect you," Narcissa told Harry.

"In the car accident?" Harry asked, getting confused.

"Car accident? Your parents weren't killed in a car accident; I don't even think they knew how to function those frivolous muggle contraptions. Your parents were killed by a man called Albus Dumbledore."

Narcissa went on to explain how Dumbledore wanted to get rid of Tom Riddle 'Voldemort' by making it look like he was responsible for all kinds of killing and was attempting to rid the world of Muggle-borns and half-bloods.

"Why?" Harry asked, confused as to why Albus Dumbledore would do that.

"Tom Riddle grew up in a muggle orphanage and was abused. He wanted to make it so all magical children were protected from muggles who feared their powers. He wanted to make it so the children who were mistreated by muggles were rescued and raised within the magic world. Dumbledore didn't like that because he prefers to have power over Muggle-borns and half-bloods and when they come from such environments they tend to look up to him as though he is a saviour and they follow his whims easier," Narcissa explained. "Dumbledore was hoping to turn you into a pawn and have you take out Tom for him."

"That doesn't make sense," Harry said, frowning.

"Every year, the abused students come back each summer, thankful for a means of escape and Dumbledore looks like he's their saviour for getting them away from home for some time. If Tom had his way, those children would be removed and would not be returned. They would be raised to understand and love magic and everything it could do. He would bring their abusers to justice. Tom believes that all magic children are a gift, a blessing, and should be treated as such."

"Dumbledore likes when his students are abused because they listen to him better? That's sick!" Harry exclaimed, earning him a nod from Narcissa. "But why MY family? Why me?"

"Yes, Harry I agree. I believe he chose you and your family because you matched the prophecy description about killing the dark lord and Dumbledore probably wanted you to be grateful to him and willing to listen to his lies," Narcissa explained as she rubbed some foul smelling stuff onto his face. "He probably wants to train you to kill Tom."

"I don't want to kill anyone!" Harry said to Narcissa. "It sounds like _he_ is the Dark Lord, not Tom."

"I would have to agree with you on that one. He is a very Dark wizard and wants too much power and he became the leader of the Light side to gain more power, but he became power hungry. But some say Darkness hides within the light."

When Narcissa was done with Harry, Severus returned with a small smile on his face.

"The old coot has discovered Harry is missing, what do you plan to do Cissy. They will discover that he's here when his letter is written in a few days and they see his name under this address because they will no doubt be looking," Severus said, watching Narcissa carefully. "The quill writes out your name and automatically writes out the address."

Harry thought for a second and he could see that Narcissa and Severus were also deep in thought.

"Wouldn't it be easy if we could just change my name to a different name came up instead of Harry Potter?" Harry said, wishing it was possible but when Narcissa and Severus shared a look, Harry wondered if his wish had actually been helpful.

"Blood adoption?" Narcissa asked Severus who regarded Harry with a look of... pride? No, it couldn't be. Nobody was ever proud of him and this man had only known Harry for maybe a couple hours.

"It could work. You and Lucius could adopt him, he could be Draco's twin maybe? Maybe name him Harrison and nobody would dare question a Malfoy child, even one who coincidentally went by the name Harry," Severus said, with a look of excitement on his face. "I'll get right on that potion, you speak to Lucius about this. It's a simple potion, I can have it done in minutes. We're going to need to move fast; the old coot will want him back in his grasp."

As Severus and Narcissa were rushing around, a small blond boy walked into the room. He was clearly confused by a smile lit his face when he spotted Harry sitting on the couch. The bruises on Harry's face were now fading and he already looked much healthier thanks to the potions he'd been given. He still looked sickly and unwell but he looked more like a child who'd taken ill, and not beaten and starved.

"Hi Harry, I'm Draco," Draco said making his way over to the young boy. "What's going on?"

"I think they're going to adopt me and I'm going to be your twin?" Harry said confused by this. He looked nothing like Draco and he was unsure how anyone was going to believe he was Draco's twin. Draco had blonde hair and grey eyes while Harry had black hair with green eyes. But obviously, there was a way because Severus was going to brew 'the potion'. At this point, Harry's mind was a little overwhelmed, so he just sat down and focused on his new 'brother'.

"Oh, cool. I always wanted a brother. Did they say why?" Draco asked, watching Harry with a smile on his face. Harry was the first boy who'd been to the house who actually had any brains; compared to Crabbe and Goyle, the house elf's provided better conversation and they automatically agreed with and believed everything and anything you said... Then again, so did Crabbe and Goyle. But at least the house elves didn't get confused whenever heard words with more than two syllables.

"He called their treatment 'deportable' and asked if I wanted to go with him and Lucius," Harry replied, wondering if it was normal to pick kids off the street and simply take them to a new home and just adopt them. But if it got him away from the beatings, he really wasn't going to question it. But they seemed to know him, so it wasn't exactly random.

"Yes, father and Severus have been busy lately, I suppose they were running around for Dumbledore Order of the Chicken group. Dumbledore doesn't like when they spend too much time together. He thinks it's unnatural," Draco said rolling his eyes.

"Are they married?" Harry asked out of genuine curiosity. Lucius and Severus had different last names but not all married couples had the same last name.

"No, I wish. He married my mum so they could have a baby and I think they stayed married because they don't want news of their divorce to spread. But Severus and my father have been together since they were at Hogwarts," Draco explained. "Do you play Quidditch?"

"What's Quidditch?" Harry asked slowly, not wanting to sound dumb but he couldn't pretend he knew what it was in case Draco asked something more specific about how Harry played.

"What's Quidditch?" Draco repeated as though he couldn't believe the question. "Merlin! What do muggles do for fun? Okay, let me explain. Quidditch is played on brooms by..."

Severus, Lucius and Narcissa came into the room as Draco was explaining to Harry who his favourite Quidditch players were. Harry noticed that the adults were all smiling and watching the boys with amused looks on their faces.

"Harry, may we speak to you and Draco?" Narcissa spoke, leading the group over to the couch.

Once everyone was seated, Narcissa picked up a potion that had been brewed just minutes before and looked at Harry with what almost looked like a nervous expression. Harry wondered what she had to be nervous about but the rest of the adults looked a bit nervous too. This must be about the blood adoption they mentioned.

"Harry, ordinarily we would give you more time to think about this but we only have about a day before Hogwarts letters will be written and there is a way to change your name quickly so your location won't be found but for that to happen, we will need to adopt you by blood. We have the potion and it already has our blood in it, when you drink it, you will look just like us and people will think you are Draco's twin. How does that sound?" Narcissa asked Harry, who smiled at the idea of being adopted. "We will love you and protect you and help you grow into a strong and confident adult."

"You'll be my parents? And Dumbledore won't be able to make me go back to them?" Harry asked, just wanting to have it confirmed that he wouldn't be going back to his hateful relatives.

"No Harry, you will never see them again because you will be our son legally and by blood," Lucius explained, realising that Harry was going to agree. Of course, there was very little doubt that he would.

"Okay, I'll do it," Harry agreed to accept the potion from Severus who was smirking happily.

The potion went down Harry's throat and seconds later, a wave of dizziness came on and soon, he felt like his skin was pulsing and squirming. Looking up, he could see Narcissa and Lucius smiling and watching him carefully. Their eyes were filled with joy but Harry could see concern deep in their eyes as well.

"We put one of Draco's hairs in as well to make sure they looked closer in features," he heard Severus whisper to Narcissa.

Within an hour of drinking the potion, Harry's hair had turned pale and his features had shifted until he looked almost identical to Draco. The differences between the two boys were very slight and could only by spotted by careful observation. This included the slightly different noses and the fact that Harry's cheeks were sunk in but Harry's cheeks would most likely fill out as he put on weight and gained the nutrients he needed.

"From here on out, you will now be known as Harrison Lucius Malfoy; that way we can continue calling you Harry so as to avoid confusion over being called a new name," Lucius explained as he looked at his new son. "Dobby!"

A small creature with massively large eyes popped into the room, his face was filled with excitement as he glanced around the room. The creature looked quickly around the room at everyone, his grin almost wider than his face and he seemed to bring a smile to Harry's face. Who would have thought such a little creature could radiate such happiness to a room?

"Harry, this is Dobby and he will be your personal house elf. Dobby, will you show Harry to his room; the one beside Draco's," Narcissa asked the elf who bowed before Harry. Harry didn't miss the smile that came across his new brother's face when he heard Harry would be sleeping in the room next to his.

"Hello, Master Harry. Dobby is very excited to meet you. Dobby will show you to your room now. What foods does Harry like? Dobby will make whatever Master Harry wants and keep him safe."

* * *

THREE DAYS LATER

Albus Dumbledore was not Happy, not in the least. As he stared at the list of students for the upcoming school year, he wondered why Harry Potter's name didn't show up. That brats name should have been there; he had been anticipating this for years.

His life had been crazy since the little runt disappeared and he put a lot of resources forward to try and find him but much to his displeasure, he came up with nothing. It had been three days and there was no trace of the boy; it was like he'd vanished off the face of the earth. Not even the Dursleys seemed to know what happened; of course, they were the most pathetic muggles he'd ever laid eyes on, so he shouldn't have been all that surprised.

Albus had been looking forward to finding the child's location when his Hogwarts letter was addressed but was shocked and disappointed to find that a letter had not been written out to the boy, so his location was still unknown.

The mere fact that a letter hadn't been written to the boy was angering Albus because that meant the child was either dead or a squib. He knew Potter wasn't a squib because he'd been given a report of the child's magic core when he was only a year old so that had to mean the child was dead but the prophecy was still alive according to the ministry. A part of him wanted to be relieved but the other part of him knew others would be less than pleased to discover the Boy Who Lived to be missing or even dead.

This little runt was ruining all of his plans. How was he supposed to get the runt to kill Tom if they couldn't even locate him? Tom and his ideas to make his students, his personal soldiers anything other than submissive and willing to follow his every order. Tom should have been able to figure out how easy it is to get people to follow you when they worship you. Send them to their less than ideal homes and every fall they are reminded of how much you have to offer them and they are back in your good graces.

Much worse, his devotion from his mindless pawns would without a doubt start to waver once it became widespread knowledge. It would take a fair amount of damage control to repair this. Perhaps he could call in a few favours and bribe a few of the right people maybe but these were resources he was hoping to utilise later and for something more important than a snot-nosed little shit.

Yes, everything was working out fine until Potter was lost and now his precious followers are starting to lose faith in him. It's obvious that if he doesn't find Potter and soon, not only will he lose his key pawn in this was but he'll lose the trust of several of his order members, including Severus Snape and Remus Lupin who had both made a promise to Harry's parents to watch out for the boy.

As Albus looked down the list he saw another Weasley name and wondered what this one was going to be like; hopefully nothing like the twins. He also spotted two Malfoy names and frowned; he was surprised by how many pureblood names were on the list. As a rule, pureblood children are not introduced to society until they are thirteen; especially in prestigious families like the Malfoys, the Parkinsons and the Zambinis. Of course, this was to offer children a chance to grow up without being viewed as public figures and to allow them normal childhoods until they were old enough to deal with the stress that came with being public figures.

Albus stared at the list for a little longer, hoping Potter's name would appear suddenly, despite the fact that the letters had already been sent out.

No, Albus Dumbledore was not happy at all and it was all the Potter runt's fault.

* * *

 **I see a lot of people change Harry's first name when his parenting situation changes but I personally think that would be confusing, especially to someone eleven years old who'd gone by one name up until a certain point. Let me know what you think. Longest chapter written so far :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**The Best Birthday**

Blonde hair, grey eyes; Harry still had yet to adjust to his new appearance and once again found himself mildly surprised by his reflection in the mirror. Best of all, his scar had faded almost completely out of sight; only when you looked really close was it visible but even then, it didn't look like much of anything. It always took a few seconds after waking up to remember everything that had happened and he always smiled when he did. His hair was finer and laid down well with a bit of gel, just like Draco's did and he liked actually having neat hair compared to what he used to have.

Everything was different now since he'd been adopted. Firstly, living in such a large house filled with people who not only wanted him around but went out of their way to make sure he was happy, comfortable and well-adjusted. It was so different from the treatment he used to receive and it was everything he used to wish for when he was younger. It was nice being treated with respect and love; an equal to the other child in the house and not used as a punching bag. Harry wasn't even yelled at here.

Narcissa was amazing; filled with such care for Draco and Harry but still made sure they were respectful and followed the rules. She was gentle and stern at the same time. Harry couldn't believe she actually cared so much for his welfare and happiness. She tucked him in at night, she comforted him when he had nightmares and made sure he had his potions when he ate. It wasn't something he'd gotten in the past and at first, he thought there was a motive but quickly came to see it as true affection and began to crave it.

Lucius was a lot of fun but Harry soon learned that beyond his aristocratic exterior was a sensitive, caring and creative man. He spent a lot of time teaching Harry and Draco things they'd need for Hogwarts. He also made sure Harry knew about magic and the history of magic. He made a point to go out of his way and confirm the message that Harry's relatives had been liars and that he was worthy of love and that he wasn't a freak. In addition to all that, he seemed to really enjoy painting and would often paint while Harry and Draco played in the backyard.

Severus was a bit more difficult; he was a snarky and sarcastic man but Harry quickly learned to see the emotions beyond the man's sneers and sarcasm. Severus seemed to relate to Harry on a level the others couldn't and often spoke to Harry about things he'd been through to help Harry get it off his chest. He told Harry it did no good to let anger sit for too long. Severus also took the time to explain potions to Harry and quickly discovered that he had a knack for them. It was because he spent so much time cooking for his relatives but he still seemed to enjoy potions.

Harry was actually greatly enjoying everything to do with the magic world. He began reading everything he could get his hands on and asking everything that came to mind. It was nice to ask questions and not get yelled at or beat. Draco was a big help, going out of his way to help Harry learn everything he could. He played games with Harry and talked about magic, their family and so much more while they played. He also taught Harry wizard's chess, exploding snap and Harry taught Draco about the muggle world. It was amusing watching Draco become confused over things as simple as the telly or brooms used for cleaning instead of flying.

"Harry! They're here! They're here!" Draco cried throwing the door open. Clasped tightly in his hands were two envelopes; their Hogwarts letters. Despite the excitement, Harry felt his gut clench nervously, what if it read Harry Potter instead of Harrison Malfoy.

"Let's see, Mr D Malfoy and Mr H Malfoy! Here you go, Harry," Draco said handing Harry his letter with a wide grin. Both boys opened their envelopes and read their acceptance letters before tearing down the stairs. Severus and Lucius were sitting at the table talking gently to each other like they did in the morning, while Narcissa was reading the Daily Prophet and sipping a cup of tea.

"What did I tell you boys about running in the house?" Severus asked, raising his eyebrow but not glancing away from Lucius.

"That we're not savages but our letters came!" Draco said holding up his letter for everyone in the room to see. Harry was too busy rereading his letter for a second time to hold up his letter but he would have held his letter up if he weren't preoccupied.

"This is cause for celebration! I think a trip to Diagon Alley is in order," Lucius announced with a wide grin on his face. "Narcissa, let's go get ready. Boys, eat quickly and get dressed; we'll head out as soon as we're ready."

***LINEBREAK***

Harry still did not like apparating but his stomach didn't react as violently as it did the last time. His head was only lightly spinning when they apparated into the streets of a village Harry assumed was Diagon Alley. There were witches and wizards in various robes and stores lined with magic items that would not have been displayed so openly in the muggle world.

"Come, Harry," Severus said in a deep voice, his face was back to the expression he used in public; annoyed with everyone around him. Of course, Harry could see past the cold expression but he could see why other's would be intimidated by the man. "Draco's measurements for his robes were taken last week but we still need to take yours. Hopefully, they'll be able to send the robes together to save time. Lucius, why don't you take Draco to get their books."

"I'll go look at some wands," Narcissa said. "When they're done with books and robes, just bring them to Ollivanders."

Harry followed Severus into a store filled with robes and people picking through the robes, trying to figure out which ones they wanted.

"Mr Malfoy, back again?"

"Ah, hello Madam Malkin, that was _Draco_ Malfoy who came in last week, this is his twin brother Harrison," Severus informed the witch with his usual sneer and annoyed expression. For a brief second, Harry wondered what it was like to be so easily annoyed or to pretend to be. He knew the man annoyed easily but not as much as he presented to the world.

"Yes, well come forward Harrison," Madam Malkin said, her voice was kind. "I've got another boy being measured as we speak."

Harry followed the lady and was guided to a stool and directed to stand on it. Within a few seconds, the measuring tape began zipping around, measuring various parts of his body. After a few seconds, Harry noticed the boy on the stool next to him. He had red hair, freckles and his clothes appeared to be hand-me-downs.

"You're going to Hogwarts, too?" Harry asked politely.

"Yeah, what's your name? I'm Ron Weasley," the boy asked, looking at Harry's clothes and flushing as he looked down at his own clothes. Harry felt bad because just a few days ago, he was dressed in worse clothes; at least his clothes fit.

"Harrison Malfoy, nice to meet you," Harry said with a grin. "What house do you think you'll be in?"

"I dunno, most of my family was Gryffindor but my brothers Percy, Fred and George are Slytherins. I just want to go where I'll fit in but I want to be more than just another Weasley. I assume you're going to be in Slytherin," Ron asked, trying to bring the attention off of himself.

"Maybe, I mean my whole family has been in Slytherin," Harry said. "I want to make a difference, but I don't know what kind of difference I want to make yet."

"Hmm, me too."

Harry opened his mouth to say something else but Madam Malkin had already returned and was already sending the boys out the door, telling them that their robes would be ready and sent out within the next couple days. When they got outside, Harry looked around for Severus but instead found two red-headed identical boys running towards them with wide, mischievous grins on their faces.

"Has ickle Ronnikins gotten his new robes fitted?"

"And he's made a friend!"

"Indeed, it looks that way and he's a Malfoy!"

"Draco Malfoy I presume."

"Well, then you would be incorrect. I am _Harrison_ Malfoy, Draco Malfoy's twin brother," Harry said with a small smile as a brief look of confusion passed the twins' faces before wide smirks filled their faces.

"Harrison, these are my brothers. Fred and George; they're third-years," Ron said, his cheeks flushing a bit as they began pinching his cheeks and patting his head as though he were just a tiny tot learning how to speak.

"Harrison, come along; we still have much to do. Fred, George; I trust you're not planning to flood the common room this year," Severus said, raising his eyebrows are the boys who instead of being nervous, seemed amused by the intimidating man.

"We had no immediate plans."

"But if you want, we might consider giving Gryffindor their own personal swimming pool."

Severus simply rolled his eyes but his smirk was neither encouraging or discouraging; in fact, Harry could have sworn there was a slight glow of amusement in his eyes at the idea.

"See you on the train," Harry said as he followed Professor Snape towards the wand shop. Draco, Narcissa and Lucius were standing outside the wand shop waiting patiently... Well, the adults were waiting patiently, Draco was pacing anxiously while Harry's new parents watched with mildly amused expressions. Upon seeing Severus and Harry, Lucius smiled and quickly winked at Severus who blushed lightly.

"No kissy faces! Harry and I want to get our wands! You can do the smooches later!" Draco exclaimed, clearly seeing the brief flirtatious moment and expressing his impatience for having to wait any longer than he already did. It was obvious Draco was not the most patient person in the world.

"Draco Malfoy, you need to be patient. Unfortunately waiting is a part of growing up that you're going to need to get used to," Narcissa said in a sharp but still kind voice. "Harry, did everything go well?"

Harry found a wide smile forming on his lips as he heard how Narcissa actually cared how his fitting went. It was nice having people actually interested in making sure he was okay and that things were going well for him.

"Yeah, I met another first-year and his brothers; they all thought I was Draco!" Harry said with a light chuckle.

"Yes, well, I'm sure that's to be expected since nobody has ever met Harrison Malfoy before," Narcissa said with a smile on her face. "Let's get your wands. Sev, can you go get their potion kits; I want their kits to be customised and you know everything they'll need. Those first-year kits just don't bring into account the fact that eleven-year-olds are clumsy and might need to do a potion more than once."

Severus nodded and turned to leave but before he walked away, he rubbed a circle on Lucius arm who made a sound that was almost like a purr.

"Yes, I'm going to bring the _children_ in to get their wands now," Narcissa said putting heavy emphasis on the word 'children'.

The way Ollivanders was laid out reminded Harry of an old bookshop except instead of books, the shelves were lined with long, thin boxes which Harry knew held the wands. Just being this close to getting a wand was enough the make Harry practically shake with excitement and Draco was obviously just as excited.

Harry was so excited that he was able to ignore how much the shopkeeper rambled and soon enough he had his wand with a look of pride and satisfaction on his face; somehow, despite the fact that he believed everything he'd been told so far, holding his wand in his hand was enough to solidify everything in his mind and make it real for him. This was no longer a desperate fantasy he'd made up from his cupboard under the stairs; this was real.

"Lucius, I'm going to pick up a few things, why don't you and Sev take the boys for some ice cream? I'll meet you there," Narcissa said with a wide grin. Lucius seemed to know what was going on and a similar grin passed his face before fading to his usual expression.

"Alright; come along boys, let's go meet Sev on the way," Lucius said as he stood up.

Severus had been on his way to meet them and Draco and Harry showed off their new wands for a few seconds before making their way to Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour. If Harry had been impressed by the lemon ice lolly, then this was a work of art; small mountains of chocolate with fruit and candies but it was apparently charmed to never make you sick or fat!

"We'll come back in a week or so to get the more personal things that you'll need. Harry, I informed the clothing place that you're going to need everyday clothing as well, including play clothes and outdoor clothing. Those will come with your uniforms," Lucius told Harry while Severus loaded their bowls with whipped cream and syrup.

Harry nodded, once again surprised by their generosity; they had gone out of their way to provide Harry with everything he needed for school and they seemed happy to do it. The Dursleys would have moaned and groaned and they would have told him that he would be paying them back once he was old enough. He also knew the Dursleys would constantly remind him of how expensive he was to care for and how ungrateful he was when he asked for a bite to eat after two days with no food.

But not the Malfoys. They made sure he had everything he needed and then some.

"I'll pay you back when I can," Harry told them, wondering how exactly he was going to come up with such money but he would figure out a way.

"You will not! You are my son now and it is our job to provide you with the things you need and even with the things you don't need," Lucius said, looking shocked to have heard a child offering him to pay him back for school supplies.

"But the Dursleys..."

"Are terrible creatures who aren't suited to raise guppies, let alone a living breathing child. We will never ask you to give us money for anything you need nor will we accept it."

Harry nodded, seeing how serious Lucius was being and a small smile escape his lips.

As they finished eating, Narcissa returned and soon they were apparating back home and once Harry recovered from the apparition, they went to the main dining room but it looked different now. There was cake, a small stack of presents and the room was decorated beautifully.

"Happy Birthday, Harry!" Narcissa announced as she gave Harry a quick hug. "Next year you'll celebrate with Draco but I didn't want you to go a whole year without celebrating."

A birthday celebration for Harry? That had never happened before. His relatives never even acknowledged his birthday before and these people not only remembered but had gone out of their way to get him presents. Harry's stomach began fluttering with excitement as he looked at the brightly wrapped parcels and the beautiful cake.

"Oh, Harry!" Narcissa cried as she wrapped her arms around him when a sob erupted from his chest.

"Nobodies ever celebrated my birthday before! Thank you," Harry managed to say, despite the fact that his throat felt so thick.

That night Harry received a broom, a few books, exploding snap, his brand new birth certificate and a backyard Quidditch set. After presents, there was cake and treats and eventually, everyone went to bed. But Harry went to sleep feeling happier than he could ever remember because today had truly been the best day of his life.


	4. Chapter 4

"Crush it... But how much should I crush it?" Harry asked Severus as he prepared the final ingredient for the potion they were brewing.

"It gets crushed the same way as the ginger," Draco said, busy with his own cauldron but still wanting to help his brother. It had been two weeks since their trip to Diagon Alley and Harry and Draco had mostly read through their books and even began practising a few spells when their parents were sleeping. Severus had come over to begin teaching Harry potions basics and how to handle a quill for writing. He seemed relieved to discover that Harry was a quick learner, just like his original mum and that the Malfoy genes had only added to this.

"I'm going to add this now," Harry said as he added the crushed sage into the potion and much to his relief, it had reacted exactly as Draco's had. Harry felt himself beaming with pride.

"Can we brew Cure for Boils next?" Draco asked, with a grin on his face. Both Harry and Draco were enjoying brewing with Severus and they wanted to make a few more potions.

"Draco, your mother said I should get you to bed on time tonight," Severus told Draco; his voice was more amused than it was scolding.

"But, mother's not here," Harry supplied with a small smirk which grew as a look of mild surprise and pride passed the potion master's face.

"They won't be home for hours. The potion will be done, we'll go to bed and they won't know a thing," Draco said, standing next to Harry so they could hit Severus with a double dose of puppy eyes. They watched as Severus' restraint began to crumble and with a scowl that showed no trace of annoyance but amusement, he told them to hurry up and get their ingredients before he changed his mind.

Lucius and Narcissa had been working on getting Sirius Black freed from Azkaban and today was the day that they were bringing him home; they had decided it was best for the moment if Severus wasn't there until he was a little more... receptive to his presence.

Once the boys disappeared out of site, he allowed a smile to graze his face; he could clearly look forward to seeing both boys in Slytherin. For Draco, this was common knowledge but Harry was surprising. Blood adoptions changed the exterior appearance but it did nothing to the personality and mentality of the child. This meant this was Harry's personality from childhood but considering his childhood, it wasn't too shocking. Of course, this didn't stop him from finding the irony in James Potter's son clearly taking a spin from his family's association with Gryffindor. He would have to appreciate the irony in silence because to the rest of the world, he was Harrison Malfoy.

"Ronald Weasley owled this morning, he wanted to know if we wanted to sit with him on the train," Harry was telling Draco as they returned to the lab with their ingredients in hand. With how little time it had taken, they had clearly been prepared for Severus to cave. Once again, he wondered what would happen if word got out that he was so easily manipulated by two eleven-year-olds; his reputation as the harsh potions master of Hogwarts would be killed for sure. He was harsh when it came to potions with Draco and Harry but only when he needed to be. He loved the boys but they had to know how series potions were and they needed to be constantly aware of their cauldrons.

"Yes, Mother talks about Molly Weasley all the time. She follows Tom; she's a spy for him actually," Draco told Harry, laughing at how dumb Dumbledore was sometimes.

"Yes, she would do anything for the health and well-being of a child. When Tom finally takes control of the ministry, they're going to open a few centres for abused, magic children and Tom is going to let Molly run that program herself," Severus said as he watched the boys set up their cauldrons. "And with her ties to Hogwarts, it really shouldn't be a problem."

"Where is Tom? Everyone says he's gone but you, mother and father have been saying 'when he comes back'. How can he 'come back' if he's dead?" Harry asked, clearly having caught on.

"Tom isn't dead, he can't be killed that easily; he has the elixir life and he'll have even longer once he get's it back from Dumbledore," Severus told the boys.

"Did Dumbdore steal the elixir from him?" Draco asked, purposely saying Dumbledore wrong.

"No, he stole the stone that creates the elixir from him and Nicholas Flamel," Severus explained as he watched as the boys prepped their ingredients.

"That's the... philosopher's stone, right?" Harry asked, clearly remembering it from one of the books he'd read recently.

"Yes, Dumbledore has it hidden in the castle but Tom is going to get it back and then he will come out of hiding," Severus told them, watching as they nodded and listened to his words while preparing their ingredients with more precision and experience than some of his third-year students. Of course, this was one of the reasons he was so glad to tutor them over the summer; when their peers saw them doing the potions correctly, hopefully, they would imitate them and learn from them.

When the potions were done, Harry and Draco went to bed, whispering about the things they planned to do once they got to Hogwarts. Draco couldn't wait to show Harry Quidditch matches and Harry couldn't wait to meet more kids and learn as much as he could. Both boys agreed that they couldn't wait to take Severus' class and see the castle.

Severus sat on the could while the boys slept and went over his coursework; he was reviewing the seventh-year curriculum when Narcissa and Lucius stepped through the floo. After giving Lucius a long kiss, the three adults sat on the couch and Severus informed them of his evening with Draco and Harry.

"I was impressed, their potions were great; even Harry's. He didn't need any assistance but considering he cooked for those muggles... I guess I shouldn't be so surprised," Severus told them.

"We will be going back this morning; getting Sirius out of Azkaban was tough enough but now we're in the process of informing him of all the lies he's been told and the truth. He's reluctant but coming around," Lucius said as he snuggled deeper into Severus' arms.

"Oh, I wish I could be there when Dumbledore discovers that Sirius Black has been set free; especially after everything he went through to get him sent there without a trial," Severus said with a laugh.

"I think we should go to bed now, we have a busy day ahead of us tomorrow," Narcissa said as she went to bed; Lucius and Severus went much further behind.

***LINEBREAK***

"Severus! Harry's talking to a snake!" Draco announced to Severus who glanced up to see his newest godson sitting with his legs crossed, his lips clearly moving.

Severus had decided it was a good idea to bring the boys outside because it hardly seemed acceptable to keep them cooped in the house, regardless of how much they didn't seem to mind. It was a known fact that children required time outdoors to run around and play.

"That's nice, Draco," Severus said chuckling at this; if this wasn't a sign that Harry was a Slytherin, then he didn't know what found the idea of Harry pretending to speak to a snake quite adorable. "Why don't you go talk to the snake, too."

"But I don't know what they're saying," Draco said, his eyes narrowed in confusion. "All I can hear is hissing."

That caught Severus' attention; deciding to investigate, he walked towards Harry and sure enough, there was a rhythmic, but clear hissing coming from the boy's mouth and the snake seemed to be hissing back in direct response. Occasionally Harry would nod or giggle slightly making it clearer that this was indeed a two-way conversation.

After a few seconds, the shock of Harry being a parseltongue wore off and he sat down beside Harry who glanced up and hissed something to the snake and pointing to Severus; it seemed as though Harry was telling the snake who he was.

"Have you always been able to speak to snakes?" Severus asked, watching Harry carefully. He knew Harry didn't lke being set apart from the norm but he had to find out if this was a recent thing or not.

"Yeah... I think. Can't you?" Harry said, catching on from Severus' tone that this might not be as common as he'd originally thought.

"Um, no. It's extremely rare. I can only think of two people in our history who could... that we know of; Salazar Slytherin and Tom Riddle. And thanks to Dumbledore's influence, anything associated with those men has been considered dark and therefore evil."

"But Dark magic isn't evil, just like light magic isn't good. You taught me that. You said magic isn't good or bad alone; it's what you use it for," Draco said, watching Severus' proud face glow with pride.

"That's right. And Dumbledore wants too much control. He wants people to believe every word he says and follow him. Harry, you have a very special gift; don't let anyone tell you any different," Severus said, putting a hand on Harry's shoulder.

"You don't think I'm a freak?" Harry asked quietly, remembering what his relatives thought about anything different from usual and this was very different.

"Harry, you're not a freak and nothing you can do will EVER make you a freak. Afterall, you're a Malfoy now and Malfoys are NOT freaks," Draco said, with a smug smile on his face, which grew when Harry smiled back.

That evening when Harry was getting ready for bed he began to think about how lucky he was that his family loved and cared for him. Severus had informed Narcissa and Lucius of Harry's gift and they proceeded to celebrate and tell him how proud they were that he had gained such a special and precious gift. They both hugged and kissed him and told him how special he was and how far he was going to go in life. The look of love and pride in the adult's eyes was something he wasn't used to having directed at him and he found that he was unable to wipe the smile off his face. This was the first time he could remember feeling so special.

"I told you they'd be proud, little snake," Severus said, smiling at Harry.

"He might be in Gryffindor, Sev," Lucius said, remembering Harry's birth parents and how they were both Gryffindors but he doubted Harry would be; by now he knew Harry well enough to know that his new godson was a Slytherin.

"Somehow, I doubt that, Luc," Severus said, with a mischievous twinkle in his eyes. He knew Lucius did too, but he wanted it to be known that they would love Harry, even if he DID wind up in Gryffindor; of course, after hearing Severus' stories and seeing a few traits himself, even he knew it wasn't likely but he hadn't had Harry for long, so it wasn't completely out of the realm of possibility. This is why he told Harry that they would still care for him, regardless of the house he was sorted into.

Harry smiled at his reflection in the mirror, he loved his new blond hair, grey eyes; not because of he looked better because these were the features of his family.

Growing up, he heard all the time how smart Dudley was, how gifted Dudley was but to be told he was doing something unique and special was something completely new to him and seeing how happy his family was made him happy. It was a feeling that he carried with him; even after he had fallen asleep and for the first time since arriving at the Malfoys, the Dursleys didn't make a single appearance in any of his dreams.


	5. Chapter 5

**Thanks for reading and sending such positive reviews; I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I wanted to take a few seconds to mention that I have not pairings set for Harry or his classmates because they are eleven years old. This means I won't be pairing Harry up in this story; it's just not something I would have worried about at eleven and I don't plan to make it something Harry will be worrying about.**

 **I also want to point out that I plan to make Harry smart but I have no intention of him being one of those kids who is _too_ smart for his age; I don't like the stories where 'Smart Harry' is basically an adult in a child's body but he will also be _a little_ more mature for his age because of his upbringing from his relatives. **

**Once again, thanks for reading and if you have any suggestions on who I should pair Narcissa up with, let me know.**

The sun had barely risen when Draco woke Harry up on the first of September and when he woke up, he was just as excited as Draco. They were finally going to Hogwarts and they would be learning magic. Harry had already read through his books with Draco and they'd been practising spells when nobody was looking but they'd actually be able to show off the things they'd learnt and meet their new classmates and teachers.

Harry looked forward to seeing the library and the castle while Draco was mainly looking forward to playing Quidditch and teaching Harry how to play. They both knew they were going to do well in Severus's class because he had just finished going over the whole first-year curriculum with them and Harry had taken to potions with a greater amount of experience than Draco because of the time he had spent cooking for the Dursleys. He'd also taught them occlumency for if they found themselves along with Dumbledore for any reason.

"Are you ready to go? Come on, let's go, we're going to be late!" Draco insisted while everyone was at the table eating breakfast. Harry was eager as well but he wasn't in a rush to leave at that moment because...

"Dragon, it's only half past nine. We won't be flooing to the station until ten," Lucius said as he kissed the top of Severus's head and smiled proudly at Draco who was now pacing the length of the kitchen. Harry had never seen Draco so impatient before and if he wasn't already so excited and nervous, he would have laughed and joked about his brother's uncharacteristic display of impatience. It was amusing to see such typical behaviours on a boy who was usually so schooled with his expressions and behaviours.

Harry went back to focusing on his breakfast; so far that morning, he'd checked his trunk for the third time, showered, dressed and spent thirty minutes trying to convince Draco not to flood to the train station before their parents had wakened actually had to wrestle floo powder from his hands.

When Harry finished eating, he went upstairs to make sure he had packed everything he was going to need. By the time it was time to floo to the train station, he was anxious to leave and nervous to go. He wasn't sure what he wanted to do, hurry to the train station or stay home. In the end, his curiosity won and he decided he would go but he was nervous. He didn't know what to expect. He was going to make sure he stayed close to his brother and keep an eye on Dumbledore.

He knew Severus would keep an eye out but he was still nervous.

"Come on, it's time to go Harry! Let's go!" Draco said as he grabbed Harry's hand and pulled him into the fireplace before he could object or check once again that he had everything he'd need.

Platform 9 3/4 was everything Harry through it would be; witches and wizards, scarlet steam from the engine and people hugging their children goodbye; some were crying and others were giving their children stern warnings to be on their best behaviour. Only Lucius and Narcissa were there because Severus was already at the castle. They'd see Lucius occasionally at the castle when he spent time with Severus.

"Slow down, Draco; we have plenty of time," Lucius told Draco, who was trying to pull Harry to the train as fast as he could. Because Harry was so busy trying to see everything around him, he was basically tripping over the ground while Draco attempted to pull him onto the train before the doors to the train could actually be opened. Thankfully, Draco took a breath and collected himself together again; he almost looked like the normal Draco unless you looked into his eyes. His eyes were full of excitement and impatience.

"Now, boy! I want you to look out for each other, whether or not you wind up in the same house. Study hard and don't hold back. You're smart boys, and I want you to do your best at all times," Narcissa said, hugging both boys, with tears running down her cheeks. It was hard to believe they were going off to Hogwarts finally and the fact that they'd only had Harry for a few months and were already sending him off was hitting her hard.

"But remember to have some fun while you're there too. Stop studying long enough to eat, sleep and take care of yourself. Remember, Severus is there if you need him," Lucius said, his voice was the same as usual but there was a bit of an emotion waver in his voice. He was going to miss them just as much as Narcissa would.

"And Harry, remember that you are allowed to demand another professor's presence when Dumbledore calls you into his office and Severus will go with you every time. He will know when you're there and he will go, even if you don't tell him; that goes for you too, Draco," Narcissa said softly. "And remember, the older Weasleys are good kids and they'll be keeping an eye on both of you as well; especially Percy."

"Yes, mother. Yes, Father," both boys repeated, both anxious to get on the train so they could see which house they were going to be sorted into. Harry was still nervous but Draco's positive energy was contagious and he was finding himself more and more excited to attend the school he'd heard so much about. He looked forward to not pretending to be dumb and having people see that he was smart and not some insane delinquent like his relatives liked to tell others.

He mainly looked forward to proving that he was a good student and that he was as smart as everyone else; he was going to fit in and make it look like he'd grown up in this world with his 'brother'. It would look strange if Draco was fully informed on the magic world while his twin brother seemed new and foreign to everything.

"Severus will be tutoring both of you this year and making sure that you're getting any extra help you need; he'll set up times later," Lucius said, now hugging the boys tightly.

When they boarded the train, they immediately went to a compartment where they could wave to their parents. When the train started moving, Harry felt an excited lurch in his stomach; this was actually happening, he was finally on his way to learn magic.

"Finally, we're on our way. I can't wait to see Uncle Sev again," Draco said, once the platform disappeared from sight and he was seated.

Harry had to agree, he had missed the stern-faced, intimidating man; he'd become accustomed to seeing him every day and these past couple days had been strange. It was always humorous to watch him first thing in the morning when he was barely awake. He scowled at everything; his coffee, Lucius, the ground, the sun.

"I can't wait for potions class. Brewing is very relaxing and I've missed it over the past couple days," Harry said, staring out the window; thinking, once again, about everything they were going to learn to do and the people they were going to meet.

"Excuse me, can I sit here? Everywhere else is full," a voice said timidly from the door. Harry recognised Ron Weasley immediately and happily invited the boy in.

"I met you at Diagon Alley but this is my twin brother, Draco," Harry said, pointing to Draco who held out his hand for the red-haired boy to shake.

"Nice to meet you; this is my rat Scabbers, he's stupid," Ron said pointing to the rat that was poking out of his pocket.

"You're sure he's alive?" Draco asked nervously as he observed the unmoving creature with its eyes wide open.

"Yeah, he's too stupid to close his eyes when he sleeps most times; it's unnerving sometimes," Ron said with a shudder.

When the trolley came by, Harry bought a few treats for them and they sat and got to know one another. They discovered that Draco and Ron liked the same Quidditch team and that both Ron and Harry enjoyed wizards chess and games of strategy. Ron had agreed to help teach Harry everything they could about Quidditch and Draco and Harry agreed to help Ron with potions.

"Has anyone seen a toad in here? A boy named Neville has lost one." A bushy haired girl asked as she barged into the compartment. "Sorry, no but he'll probably appear in the castle with the rest of our stuff. Everything in the train is charmed to appear in the castle upon arrival."

"Sorry, no but he'll probably appear in the castle with the rest of our stuff. Everything in the train is charmed to appear in the castle upon arrival," Draco told her, causing her cheeks to turn pink; she looked upset by the fact that she didn't know that.

"Oh, I hadn't read that anywhere," the girl said, looking down at her feet with an embarrassed expression.

"It's actually new," Harry informed her. "We only know about it because our Godfather works at Hogwarts; he's the Potions Master and he was there when they placed the charm a few days ago. It's a lost and found charm designed so if anything gets lost on the train, it will make its way to the castle."

The girl let out a small grin and her blush faded a bit.

"I'm Draco Malfoy, this is my brother Harrison and our friend Ron Weasley," Draco said, standing up as he'd been taught.

"I'm Hermione Granger," Hermione said, smiling. "I should go find Neville so he can stop looking. It was nice meeting you."

The rest of the trip was uneventful, Ron and Harry played wizard's chess and found that they were closely matched in the game. Ron seemed to appreciate having some actual competition in the game and Draco seemed content just to watch them play. It wasn't until they were almost to Hogwarts that another interruption came in the form of Ron's twin brothers.

They were both dressed in their robes and as expected, they were trimmed with green and silver like any other Slytherin robe. They wore mischievous grins on their faces; they were up to something.

"We thought we'd come and tell you,"

"That it's time to change into your robes,"

But upon seeing Draco and Harry, they grinned before turning and leaving so they could get dressed.

"Oh, Ronnikins; thought we'd let you know that we may or may NOT have charmed one of the Gryffindor's spiders to sleep with you tonight," one of the twins said before closing the door. Ron's face immediately paled at the idea but the fear quickly vanished.

"If they did, I'll charm Scabbers to poop in their beds at night," Ron said, with a growl as he started putting on his robes for Hogwarts.

Once the boys were dressed, they began staring out the window because the train was starting to slow down and soon enough the train had come to a complete stop.

The doors swung open and Harry hesitantly made his way off the train, making sure Draco and Ron were within sight at all times; he did not want to lose them, especially with al the nervous butterflies flapping around inside his belly.

"Firs' Years! Firs' Years this way!" a loud voice called out over the crowd. Harry turned in time to see a giant man signalling for the first years to follow him somewhere.

They didn't go very far because soon enough, they were at the edge of a large body of water with several little boats.

"No more than four to a boat," the giant man said as he sat in a boat that should have had trouble holding his weight but seemed to have no difficulty at all.

Once the boats were all boarded and moving, Harry looked forward and was completely amazed by how beautiful the massive castle in front of him was. He didn't have to look in order to know that both Ron and Draco were looking at the massive castle as well.

It was larger than he could have ever dreamed it would be and suddenly, he was nervous that he was going to spend more time lost than actually attending his classes. The next day would be Monday and they would be starting classes; he wished they could have one more day to wonder the castle and figure out where they were going so they could figure out where everything was and where their classes were. He didn't like the idea of not being able to find his classes but hopefully, they would have something in place to keep them from getting too lost.

"Alright, follow me, let's go!"

Harry had been so distracted looking at the castle that he hadn't even realised they'd come to a stop.

Making their way to the castle was a quiet affair because everyone was staring at the castle more and more as they got closer because if it hadn't looked big enough from the lake, than standing right by it was enough to realise how huge it really was.

They were lead to a large door where the man lifted a giant fist and banged on the door three times. Eventually, a woman with a stern face opened the door.

"Hagrid," she greeted in a stern voice, her lips were tight as she spoke and she looked like someone who was not to be messed with.

"The firs' years, Professor McGonagall," Hagrid replied in an obedient tone.

"Very well, everyone, follow me, the sorting ceremony will begin shortly," she said as she led everyone up a flight of stairs and to a set of double doors. This was clearly the door that leads to the sorting ceremony. There was no going back now.

***LINEBREAK***

The Potter brat had not been found. He had spent the better part of August looking for the little runt and now it was the first of September and nothing. The last sighting reported had been at a Muggle playground back in July and since then, there had been nothing. It was reported that the boy and been in rough physical condition and he was starting to fear that the little runt had died from his injuries.

He was going to have to speak to Vernon Dursley and see how hard he had beaten the boy; he'd been clear when instructing the man to never beat the runt hard enough to create lasting damage and certainly not hard enough to mortally injure him. This was the only explanation he could come up with for the runt having disappeared so completely.

"It's time, the older students are arriving," Minerva said as she straightened her robes and began preparing herself to greet the first years. Of course, Dumbledore could only concentrate on the fact that the Potter brat was missing, he knew he had to appear interested in the other students but sooner or later, he was going to have to come up with a plan B for when people began demanding answers about why the "Boy Who Lived" was not sorted.

Dumbledore put on his usual twinkle-eyed, innocent expression and made his way to the staff table in time to see the older students making their way into the Great Hall. They were noisily regarding each other and speaking as though they hadn't just spent the past few hours talking on the train; oh, how hard it was not to sneer at the idiots as they sat down and gossiped excitedly amongst themselves but he had an image to keep up and sneering was not part of that image. Besides, Snape appeared to be sneering enough for the two of them.

Snape, his biggest success! He'd been able to trick Severus Snape into spying for him and now the man was putty in his hand. Turning Snape against Tom had been one of his greatest accomplishments, next to faking the prophecy that got the Potter Runt labelled the Boy Who Lived.

But, he had to stop thinking about the runt for now; for now, he had to focus on brainwashing the next generation of magic to fit perfectly into his agenda and he was going to have to figure out a way to do it without the Potter Brat's influence.

As the door opened and the first-years were let into the room, he put on his biggest and brightest smile and secretly watched for the very remote chance that the Potter Brat would be among the group of eleven-year-olds but he knew he wasn't; of course, it didn't stop him from looking and hoping. He was going to face hell in the morning when word got out that Harry Potter didn't come to Hogwarts today.

He watched as Minerva brought in the first years; they all looked so young and impressionable. He couldn't wait to have them under his influence. He was going to have those brats under his control. Kids this age were so easily controlled, especially those with less than ideal parents. All it took was the right amount of affection and attention and they were like putty.

It was going to be a long year without Potter but he was going to have to make due with what he had. It was going to take some plotting and planning but he was going to make his plan work; one way or another, the wizarding world was going to be his.

 **Next chapter will be the much-anticipated sorting ceremony; which I will hopefully have up by tomorrow or Sunday.**


	6. Chapter 6

The Great Hall was bigger than Harry could have ever imagined and the fact that it was charmed to look like the night sky only added to the effect that the room was endless. The main part of the room was the four tables that Harry immediately recognised as the house tables which were occupied by the older students who had already been sorted; they were peering in at the younger students with curiosity.

Once and a while, an older student would wave to or point out one of the first years but for the most part, walking past the main tables was a quiet event. As they reached the staff table, Harry spotted a stool with a ratty old hat sitting on it. Next to the hat was Professor McGonagall, her expression was as stern as it had been mere moments ago but there was a look of excitement in her eyes as the first-years gathered anxiously around the hat.

When the group was gathered around the hat, the wrinkles morphed into eyes and a mouth and in a low, gravelly voice, the hat began singing a song that Harry knew had to have been sung every single year.

 _Oh, you may not think I'm pretty,_  
 _But don't judge on what you see,_  
 _I'll eat myself if you can find_  
 _A smarter hat than me._

 _You can keep your bowlers black,  
_ _Your top hats sleek and tall,  
_ _For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat_  
 _And I can cap them all._

 _There's nothing hidden in your head_  
 _The Sorting Hat can't see,_  
 _So try me on and I will tell you_  
 _Where you ought to be._

 _You might belong in Gryffindor,_  
 _Where dwell the brave at heart,_  
 _Their daring, nerve, and chivalry_  
 _Set Gryffindors apart;_

 _You might belong in Hufflepuff,  
_ _Where they are just and loyal,_  
 _Those patient Hufflepuffs are true_  
 _And unafraid of toil;_

 _Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,  
_ _if you have a ready mind,_  
 _Where those of wit and learning,_  
 _Will always find their kind;_

 _Or perhaps in Slytherin  
_ _You'll make your real friends,_  
 _Those cunning folks use any means_  
 _To achieve their ends._

 _So put me on! Don't be afraid!_  
 _And don't get in a flap!_  
 _You're in safe hands (though I have none)_  
 _For I'm a Thinking Cap!"_

After the hat was finished singing, Professor McGonagall picked up what appeared to be a very large scroll before turning back to the first-years. She wore a proud and excited expression on her face as she regarded the eleven-year-olds loud enough for the whole school to be able to hear.

"When I call your name, you will come forward and put on the hat to be sorted into your house. Your uniforms will be changed automatically upon being sorted," she said as she opened the scroll and began reading each name allowed. "Abbot, Hannah."

By the time the came to the M's, Harry was getting tired of standing around. He was in the middle of rolling on the balls of his feet when he heard Draco's name being called.

Upon sitting on the stool and putting the hat on, Draco was sorted into Slytherin a few seconds later.

"Malfoy, Harrison."

Harry trudged towards the stool with a worried expression, he knew that he wasn't going to be called by the name Potter now but he was about worried about the house he was going to be placed in.

When the hat was placed on his head, he heard a voice inside his mind but it wasn't coming through his ears. The hat was communicating directly into his mind.

"Ah, yes! You've got a good mind here and a thirst to not only prove yourself but to make a difference. You're determined and you believe in hard work to get what you want and you don't back down. Yes! I know where you should go!"

"SLYTHERIN!"

Harry felt a wide grin take over his face as he took off the hat and calmly walked over to the Slytherin table where he took a seat next to his grinning brother.

"Good job, Harry!"

"Can we call you Harry?"

"I think we shall!"

Harry and Draco shared a quick look before they shot the older twins a wide grin; they seemed quite entertaining and it was easy to see themselves becoming friends with them in the future.

Turning back to the Sorting ceremony, Harry grinned when he saw Severus nod in his direction before watching more of his classmates being sorted into their respective houses.

"Weasley, Ronald."

Fred and George turned to watch their brother with wide grins on their faces as he sat on the stool. For a second it looked like the twins were swapping bets about which house Ron was going to wind up in but Harry simply watched and waited until...

"SLYTHERIN!"

It was obvious that George had lost the bet because Fred was beaming quite proudly at his brother who was already making his way to the table with a look of relief and pride in his eyes.

"I told you so," Fred whispered to George as Ron sat down beside Harry and a round-faced first-year boy. Draco smiled and gave Ron a quick pat on his shoulder before watching the rest of the first-years being sorted.

"Congratulations, Ron! Mum's going to be so pleased."

"Thanks, Percy," Ron said as he grinned towards his stern-looking brother who was regarding his brother with approval and this seemed to mean a lot to Ron because he seemed to sit just a little straighter at the compliment.

"That's our brother Percy. He's a Prefect this year, mum was so proud when she found out," Ron said with a smile.

When the sorting was finished, a man with a long white beard, Albus Dumbledore, stood up and looked around the room before he began talking; he was looking for someone and clearly had been unable to locate them and his expression seemed unreadable but it was obvious this was something he'd been expecting.

"Welcome to another year at Hogwarts. I'd like to start off by mentioning that, as usual, the forbidden forest is out of bounds unless escorted by a Hogwarts staff member. I'd also like to mention that the third-floor corridor, to the right, is out of bounds to those who do not wish to die a most painful death."

Harry couldn' believe he would mention the last part. Wasn't it enough to tell them to stay out; did he really need to bring up death so casually and right before they ate?

"He's mad, isn't he?" Harry whispered to Draco but received a nod from almost everyone at the Slytherin table.

"Also, Mr Filch would like me to mention that if anyone is found locking Mrs Norris out of the castle, they will be cleaning her litter box and trimming her claws for a month."

"Last year someone made a habit of locking Mrs Norris out of the castle; Mrs Norris is Flitch's cat and they never found out who did it," Fred said with a frown.

"We wish it had been us but that cat bites and scratches; can't afford to risk scarring our perfect faces," George said as they both ran their hands through their hair.

"Alright, with no further ado, let's tuck in!"

Suddenly, the tabled became lined with wonderful smelling food and Harry's stomach let out a loud and triumphant growl.

"Alright, Neville?" Ron asked the round-faced boy who was helping himself to some chicken.

"I'm fine, just surprised to have been sorted into Slytherin; my grams might not be too pleased," Neville said.

"Well, don't worry for now. Have you met Harrison and Draco Malfoy?" Ron asked pointing to the blonde twins.

"No, I'm Neville Longbottom; nice to meet you," Neville said nervously as he shook both Harry and Draco's hands.

It wasn't until the meal was done that Percy and the female prefect, Gloria Lanigiro, took the first years on a tour of the castle; not the whole castle but the main places they would need to know within the first few weeks. This highlighted classes, fire exits, hospital wing and what to do when they got lost. It turns out the portraits in the halls can give students directions to any room or person in the castle; all you had to do was ask.

Upon entering the Slytherin common room, Harry was amazed by the black, silver and green decor to the room; it should have looked dark and cool but somehow they did it in a way that looked warm and inviting. There were several fireplaces with chairs clustered around. On the other side of the room, it looked like a library with several bookshelves and large tables set up. Each table had eight chairs and a little basket with quills, ink, parchment, and anything else that might be needed for studying.

"This is our study area; as Slytherins, we stick together and work together to help each other learn. This is why we have extra study periods; you will be broken into groups of eight where you will study together for a total of four hours a week. We are the only house that does this and because of this, we have the highest academic rate," Percy said proudly and he moved on and pointed began pointing out the fireplaces which were not connected to the floo network.

"If you'll look over here, you will see all of the Slytherin class schedules sorted by year. These are updated automatically, so if a teacher takes ill, the schedule will automatically take note or if for some reason a class changes rooms," Gloria said pointing to the seven large grids which were posted to the wall. Above the charts were the names of the Prefects on duty that night, the password for the common rooms and the Slytherin house rules.

"As you can see, we have a few rules in Slytherin that set us apart from the other houses. We are a united house and we stay by each other's sides. If we see one of our own in distress or in need of assistance, we do so. People think that in Slytherin we are against the presence of muggle-borns but in truth, Salazar Slytherin was opposed to muggle-borns coming to Hogwarts ill-prepared and not taught of our history. He hated how they were simply thrown into the curriculum and expected to keep up with those raised in the magic world," Gloria said as she motioned for Percy Weasley to continue.

"This lack of preparation extended into the summer, where muggle-raised children were being mistreated, whether intentionally or not, by their muggle families who either didn't know how to help them foster their magic or wanted to eliminate them. Certain influences have told you that Tom Riddle, Lord Voldemort, wants to eliminate muggle borns but in reality, he wanted to bring forth Salazar's vision and start an introductory year for Muggle-raised students to come and learn magic so they could easily catch up to their classmates. This would include resources for their families to learn from," Percy said as he walked around the room, his chest poufed out proudly. "He also wanted to see that these children were protected from muggle families who would harm them because of their magic."

"It is important to remember," Gloria started. "That some people will have certain misconceptions about you, as Slytherin, but it is important that you hold your heads up high and stand together because only through unity can you stay strong against those who have been corrupted and misinformed."

When the prefects finished speaking, Severus walked into the room causing several of the first-years, Neville and Ron included, to stiffen at the sight of the daunting and intimidating man.

"Relax," Harry whispered. "He's our godfather. He might be stern but he's fair and he's only stern when he needs to be."

"I wanted to welcome the newest snakes to Slytherin house and point out that I am available to speak with anyone who needs to talk. I am your potions master and I will be strict in class and to those who break rules but I am here for support if anyone should need it. If I am unavailable, then you may turn to any of the prefects as they have my trust and confidence to deal with most matters in a professional manner."

Once everyone was dismissed for the night, Harry, Draco, Ron and Neville hung back to speak with Professor Snape.

"Severus, this is Ron and Neville," Draco said pointing out the two boys.

"Yes, I believe they will be your dormmates," Severus said with a thin smile on his lips; clearly glad that they seemed content with each others company as the would be spending a lot of time together. "You guys should go upstairs and rest; I'm sure you'll be wanting to write to your families. Oh, and congratulations."

"May we borrow Axel tonight?" Draco asked quietly, excited to write home.

"Why would you want to borrow my owl when your owls are waiting in by your beds?" Severus said, with a mischevious glint in his eyes, causing Harry and Draco to smile joyfully as they made their way to their dorms where a white snowy owl and a grey barn owl were waiting. The white owl had Harrison's name on her cage and the grey owl had Draco's name.

"They're beautiful!" Draco said as he stuck opened the cage with his name on it. Doing the same, Harry laughed as his owl perched herself on his shoulder and began playfully nibbling his ear.

With that, the boys began writing to their parents to tell them all about their sorting.

***LINEBREAK***

The Potter brat hadn't shown up; he knew he wouldn't but he had been secretly hoping he would just show up without confirmation. It was two o'clock in the morning and angry owls have already started arriving. They knew Harry Potter was supposed to be there and work had somehow leaked that he was missing.

One of the letters had been from a near blood-thirsty Molly Weasley. He knew Minerva was not too pleased with him and according to one owl, the Daily Prophet was going to interview the Dursleys with truth serum; that letter was the one he hoped was a joke because if it wasn't, he was going to be dealing with the fallout and he didn't want to deal with that. Apparently, they were on their way to the Dursleys as they wrote, so chances are they were already there. He hoped they couldn't find them or that it was a joke but the fact that they knew the Dursley name killed any hope of that happening.

As much as he wanted to ignore the feeling, he was starting to worry that the Potter Spawn was dead and now his back up option had been sorted into Slytherin and he couldn't fall back on him. Everything was falling to pieces and now taking over the ministry was going to be that much harder.

He was going to have to wait a while and see what the Prophet was going to publish before he decided what he was going to do next. He couldn't believe how much one little brat could ruin his plans so much and now he was going to become a mockery to the wizarding world. There was nothing he could do now except for hope this didn't go too far.


	7. Chapter 7

_**Abused Boy-Who-Lived Never Reported Missing**_

 _After an anonymous tip, I found myself at 4 Privet Drive, the former 'home' of Harry James Potter who has been missing since July without the knowledge of anyone in the ministry. Upon dosing the Vernon, Petunia and Dudley Dursley, we discovered that Albus Dumbledore has known about the disappearance of Harry Potter since July and has made no effort to inform any ministry officials._

 _If this wasn't disturbing enough, it was discovered that Harry Potter has been abused, starved and neglected at the home Albus Dumbledore placed Potter against the clearly placed instructions of his parents' wills. Whether or not Dumbledore was aware of the abuse is up for question but it is known that he was responsible for Potter's placement with the muggles in question. There were also implications that such abuse was encouraged by Albus Dumbledore, the headmaster of Hogwarts._

 _The well-being of Harry Potter is unknown because, under the influence of a truth serum, Mr Dursley admitted to having been regularly beating and belittling the child, including the severe beating that Potter received the day he disappeared. Now, we are not only worried about the location of Mr Potter but whether or not he is still alive. If the beatings weren't bad enough, the Dursleys refused to inform Harry of his magic inheritance and went as far as to tell him there was no such thing as magic._

 _"The little freak got what he had coming to him. He was stuck in our care and we were expected to feed him. We were given more than enough money to care for him but we preferred to keep food from him and tell him we spent too much money feeding and clothing him," Mr Dursley stated at one point. "We called him Freak until he was four. Now, you freaks need to get out of my house."_

 _These reports were further checked when Mr Potter did not show up to Hogwarts._

 _Harry Potter is eleven years old but small for his age. He has black hair, green eyes and wears glasses. He has a lightning bolt scar on his forehead and may or may not be covered in various bruises and cuts. If spotted, approach with caution because Harry is unaware of the magic world._

 _The Dursleys have been taken into custody and a trial will be happening in just a few moments where the Dursleys will be tried under_ _veritaserum_. _A few members present are demanding the Dementor's kiss for the older Dursleys. I will keep you posted as the trial continues._

 _More on Harry Potter Pg 2_

 _More on the Dursleys Pg 3_

 _More on Albus Dumbledore Pg 5_

Harry finished reading the article Draco had just finished showing him and he could not believe his eyes. The story had made the front of the Daily Prophet and everyone in the Great Hall seemed to be whispering about it. Occasionally people could be heard whispering things like Harry, Potter, Dumbledore, and muggles. Almost every seemed to be talking about his disappearance and they all seemed angry.

Harry closed the paper so he didn't have to watch the picture of his angry purple-faced uncle wave his fist at the camera and scream things that certainly weren't appropriate for children to be hearing.

"They are screwed. And the best part is, they'll bring Dumbledore right down with them," Draco whispered, grinned as they began loading their plates with food.

Hedwig and Apollo arrived a few minutes into breakfast with letters from their parents, congratulating them on being sorted into Slytherin and wishing them well on their first day of school.

"I told you! I told you they were the worst kind of muggles but did you listen?" Professor McGonagall could be heard from the hall as she yelled at Dumbledore. "Did you read what he said? I swear if you had anything to do with their treatment of the boy, I will personally rip those twinkles out of your eyes and shove them so far down your throat that they'll come out the other end!"

When they walked into the Great Hall, Professor McGonagall's face was red with anger and Dumbledore's face was pale and his eyes were wide with fear. As they made their way to the table, it was obvious that Dumbledore was attempting to give Professor McGonagall as much space as he could without leaving the hall altogether.

Everyone had stopped eating to fix Dumbledore with a wide range of looks varying from confusion to anger. No one looked thrilled with Dumbledore, even the staff looked like they wanted to give him a swift kick in the face.

By the time breakfast was over, Harry was more excited about his first classes than anything else. As he went to leave the hall, he spotted Hermione and gave the Ravenclaw a quick wave before heading off to his very first class.

Transfiguration was the first class of the day and Professor McGonagall impressed the whole class by showing off her ability to turn into a cat at will. Harry found himself amazed by that and several others had been just as amazed by this.

"Transfiguration is one of the most complex and dangerous magics you will learn while at Hogwarts. This means that I will not hesitate to throw you out of class if I should see you messing around. We will begin by transfiguring these matches into needles," Professor McGonagall said, as she handed out a matchstick to the students.

Harry and Draco grinned, this was one of the spells they had practised over the summer and they had both mastered it.

"Mssrs Malfoy! I am impressed. I think you have both earned 10 points to Slytherin!" Professor McGonagall exclaimed, unable to hide her surprise that they had gotten the spell so quickly.

For the rest of the class, they helped Ron and Neville with the spell; by the end of class, they had needles and the four of them were exempt from the class essay. Several of the other Slytherins who had begun listening to Harry and Draco's instructions had also come close enough that their essays were brought down by several inches.

Charms was uneventful; the teacher was really nice and was impressed with how quickly Hary and Draco caught on. And like the last class, they helped Ron and Neville.

Hermione was in that class and she was the first Ravenclaw to cause her quill to slide off her desk.

After lunch was Defense against the Dark Arts with Professor Quirrell; he was a decent teacher and had begun the class by teaching everyone basic spells they could use on their jewellery and clothes to defend against mind magic and memory altering spells. When a student had trouble with one of the charms, Quirrell went over and worked with them until they got it.

At suppertime, Harry was telling Draco, Ron and Neville about how he'd put protective charms on his socks when the doors to the Great Hall swung open with a loud bang. The hall went quiet as two strangers came into the room and made their way to the staff table with smug and satisfied expressions on their faces.

"Why are there aurors here?" Someone whispered.

Nobody in the hall made an effort to hide the fact that they were watching the aurors approach the staff table. The Auror closest to Harry seemed to have an exceptionally proud expression on his face, like he was about to do something he had wanted to do for a very long time and now his dreams were coming true.

"No way!" A Slytherin whispered in an excited voice.

"No, they wouldn't do it so publicly, would they?" Another voice whispered back.

"Albus Dumbledore!" one of the Aurors said as his partner placed a spell on Dumbledore that rendered him unable to move anything but his legs. "You are under arrest. You have the right to remain silent; anything you say can and _will_ be used against you in a court of law.

At the staff table, nobody seemed to be rushing forward to help the old man as the Aurors began escorting Dumbledore out of the Great Hall.

After they were out of the hall, the silence broke as everyone began talking about what had just happened and how they couldn't believe that Albus Dumbledore had been arrested in the middle of the meal. Several others could be seen removing parchment and quills from their bags as they began hastily writing to their families to inform them of what had just happened.

Severus Snape had a smug look on his face as he nodded towards Harry and Draco before he waltzed out of the Great Hall with a look of amusement in his eyes.

Moments later, hundreds of owls swooped into the Great Hall, each carrying copies of the Daily Prophet; it was clearly a special edition as they never seemed to come this late. A copy of the paper was dropped into the lap over everyone in the hall, including the house elf who was cleaning up after a student had dropped their food on the floor.

 _ **Trial To Conclude Tomorrow Due to New Evidence**_

 _The trial against Veron and Petunia Dursley was brought to an abrupt halt after the pair both confessed to being paid by Albus Dumbledore to abuse and neglect their nephew, Harry Potter; a deed they seemed much too happy to follow through with._

 _It appears that Harry Potter was beaten, starved, neglected and belittled by his relatives under orders by Albus Dumbledore, the leader of the Order of the Phoenix. To make matters worse, Potter was forced to serve the family hand and foot while his relatives catered to his cousin's wild whims; devoid of affection and love, Harry watched as his cousin was spoiled, pampered and loved. If that weren't bad enough, while most children are praised for their accomplishments and accidental magic, Harry Potter was punished for excelling in school and beaten for his magic but never told why he was being punished._

 _The trial has been postponed until later this evening when Albus Dumbledore will put in his statement under_ _veritaserum. As usual, I will keep you posted on the events of the evening. The DMLE is working hard to make sure all parties involved are tried and brought to justice._

 _More on Vernon and Petunia Dursley Pg 6_

 _More on DMLE on Pg 8_

***LINEBREAK***

"Order in the court! Order in the court!"

The Dursleys had just been removed from the stand and taken from the room before one of the furious members of the jury or audience could cast the killing curse of the pair.

Cornelius Oswald Fudge had a splitting headache; if hearing the unspeakable acts committed against a child wasn't enough to bring pain to his head, then listening to the people in front of him demanding immediate justice was certainly doing the job. Fudge felt confident that he wouldn't have to search long and hard for someone willing to go back and give "justice" to the muggles who had probably been returned to their temporary cell where they had spent the better part of the day cowering.

"What do you think will happen to them?"

The question came from Arthur Weasley, who was holding his wife in his arms in an attempt to keep her from hexing her way into the holding room and bringing her own justice to the abusive muggles.

The woman looked ready to commit murder and it wasn't surprising considering she loves children and would do anything to defend and protect a child. The woman had seven children but would take in more if she could. Molly Weasley was the ultimate mother figure and the fact that she refrained from killing the Dursleys during the trial was nothing short of a miracle.

"I can assure you, it would be hard to get them anything less then kissed; not that I would be fighting too hard for that. They deserve that and much more, even without the 'headmasters' influence," Fudge said, not even trying to hide his dislike for the old man. But he found it hard to like anyone with such medieval beliefs towards the way people lived.

Finally, after several minutes of waiting, the aurors arrived with Albus Dumbledore in hand.

"Court is back in session!" Fudge announced as Dumbledore was placed before him and veritaserum was administered.

"State your name," the first auror demanded.

"Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore."

"Is it true that you paid the Dursleys to abuse, neglect and starve Harry Potter?"

"Yes."

The answer caused dead silence to fall upon the room. The only sound that could be heard for several seconds was Rita's quill. Nobody as much as breathed for several seconds while the shock registered in peoples minds. Albus Dumbledore, the face of everything good and light had paid muggles to mistreat not only a magic child but the saviour of the wizarding world?

"Why?"

"So he would be grateful to me when I brought him to Hogwarts; he'd have been the perfect weapon and he would have been so easily swayed to follow my whims," Dumbledore said. The words alone coming from him were horrible enough but the monotone from the veritaserum made it that much more disconcerting and somewhat creepy.

"And what plan was that?"

"To eliminate Tom Riddle. Tom's plans for eliminating abused children from their homes and educating muggle parents; it interferes with my plans for taking control of the wizarding world. Abused kids are more obedient and therefore they listen better and are easier to control. With a few kind words, I can have them eating out of my hands," Dumbledore said, the dull tone of his voice somehow making his words more alarming and unbelievable.

"And who is Tom Riddle?"

"Tom Riddle is the one I have tricked all of you into calling 'Lord Voldemort'."

The room went quiet once again; shock registered on most faces in the room as these words settled; not even Rita's quill could be heard scribbling.

"What do you mean by that? What does 'he-who-must-not-be-named have to do with this?"

The auror's voice broke as he asked the question, his face paling as possibilities began entering his mind.

"There is no 'Lord Voldemort'. Only Tom Riddle and he was soft as they come. Believed magic children should be raised with love and praise; he wanted to give muggle-born and Muggle-raised children extra education, he wanted them removed from abusive homes but this got in my way, so I created an alter ego for him," Dumbledore said, his face dripping with sweat and his face was twisted into a painful expression as he attempted to fight the effects of the potion.

"Why did he kill and torture so many?"

The question seemed unnecessary but the auror felt it needed to be asked but nobody was surprised with what came out of Dumbledore's mouth next.

"Tom never killed or tortured anyone; never could. I tortured and killed those people under polyjuice potion, including the Potters."

"Did you kill Tom Riddle?"

"No! He is alive and in hiding somewhere. No, he was never gone but convincing the world that Harry Potter made him disappear was my greatest accomplishment and had he not disappeared, he would have been my best tool in taking over the ministry."

"So the boy-who-lived..."

"There is no boy-who-lived. I chose him very carefully! Harry Potter is just a regular boy and you fools all ate it up! How stupid could you be? Only Sirius Black questioned me and I had him thrown in Azkaban. You're all FOOLS!"

"Your honour?" The Auror's voice broke Fudge away from his thoughts. "The potion will be wearing off soon, so I'm calling for a recess to further investigate and replenish our stalks because we do not have enough to answer all of the questions that need to be asked."

Fudge stared at Dumbledore, whose face was starting to show comprehension and his expression seemed more guarded now.

"I'll allow it! Auror's escort Dumbledore to a holding cell in Azkaban. I want at least five dementors guarding him at all times. I want the Dursleys placed in a holding cell there as well," Fudge spoke knowing he couldn't have any of them kissed because they were going to be needed for the investigation but spending time with the dementors would have to do for now.

"Skeeter!" Fudge called out, startling Rita out of her thoughts. This was the part of the evening that always came, the part where Rita was told what bits she was, under no circumstances, allowed to publish or repeat.

"Yes, Minister Fudge."

Rita waited to be told she wasn't allowed the publish anything; a story this big was too good to be true. There was no way she would be able to...

"Publish everything!"

That was without a doubt the happiest Rita Skeeter had ever been in her life. This was going to be the story that was going to solidify her career; she was about to go down in history as the reporter who exposed Dumbledore for the evil twisted bastard he was. After a few seconds, she realised that he was serious. With an excited nod, Rita set to work to publish the article that was going to shake the foundation of the wizarding world completely.

 **A/N I did not show the Dursleys testimony because that would involve graphic descriptions of violence and therefore the rating on the story would have to go up. I haven't gone deep into Dumbledore's motives or ultimate plans but they'll be mentioned later in the story.**


End file.
